[Bob Ward (rgward)]

Summary

Build all three macOS ARM64 Private Preview packages and ship a self-contained tester kit using the maintained test suites, with repeatable offline validation and a staged macOS support plan.

• Publish sqlsim, sqlpysim, Studio, and a self-contained tester kit with provenance and checksums; validate extracted packages before upload.
• Run Apple Silicon build/package/offline checks on relevant PRs, main pushes, and manual dispatches.
• Adapt shared CLI/Studio suites for installed macOS packages, explicit target/authentication options, portable process lifecycle tests, and deterministic cleanup.
• Require explicit live/load-test consent, keep credentials in files/stdin, preserve JSON/log reports, and bound offline checks.
• Use system ICU only for the macOS ARM64 Studio candidate; Windows/Linux retain pinned app-local ICU.
• Document maintainer-owned validation, live-backend options, signing/browser/installation gates, and per-tool promotion criteria. No live backend is selected or provisioned.

Validation

Exact head: 071c03cccd967b01533f3acdfe71bacbf30a4dc2.

• Apple Silicon build, per-tool offline smoke/startup checks, archive extraction/layout/architecture validation, canonical suite parity, runner safety checks, and all four archive checksums passed: https://github.com/microsoft/sqlsimtools/actions/runs/39496132389
• Extracted tester kit: all seven offline checks passed. Studio full offline suite: 75 passed, 0 failed, 4 live-only skips. Python unit tests passed.
• Windows Studio build, command-line/startup checks, full offline validation, browser regression tests, and responsive layout checks passed: https://github.com/microsoft/sqlsimtools/actions/runs/39496137059
• PowerShell syntax and git diff --check passed.
• Live macOS SQL smoke/full suites have not been run. Real-Mac installation, Safari/browser use, signing/notarization, and live SQL/authentication remain explicit Private Preview gaps; this does not promote any platform to supported status.

Distribution and follow-up

Actions artifacts only: no public release, version bump, tag, credentials, infrastructure provisioning, or branch-protection change. After merge, build a fresh candidate from main and update existing tester invitations with the main-built artifact. Keep feedback issues open.

Related: #38, #31, #25, #24.

[Bob Ward (rgward)]

Reviewed the complete change scope: packaging uses the existing per-tool publishers, generated kits reuse canonical test suites, no test inventories were removed, Windows/Linux ICU remains pinned, and macOS-specific behavior plus the live-validation gaps are documented. Exact-head Apple Silicon extracted-kit validation and Windows Studio offline/browser/layout validation are green (linked in the PR); PR-triggered cross-platform checks are still pending. No blocking diff findings. This is not evidence of live macOS SQL correctness or supported-platform promotion; merge only after CLA and all PR checks are green.

[Bob Ward (rgward)]

Post-merge validation complete: main commit 4702a27 built successfully in https://github.com/microsoft/sqlsimtools/actions/runs/39502675220. All four archive checksums and all seven extracted-kit offline checks passed; Studio full offline suite: 75 passed, 0 failed, 4 live-only skips. Main-built candidate: https://github.com/microsoft/sqlsimtools/actions/runs/39502675220/artifacts/12302342833. Updated and verified the existing invitations in #38, #31, #25, and #24 with this candidate, main commit/pinned documentation links, and Private Preview testing-assistance wording. No duplicate invitations, release, or tag created. Live macOS SQL testing remains unverified.